(Texas Scorecard) – As a result of President Joe Biden’s open border policies, South Texas rancher Michael Vickers is spearheading a lawsuit against the Biden-Harris administration for damages his ranch sustained.
Other plaintiffs named in the lawsuit are Kinney County and Atascosa County, as well as Kinney County’s Sheriff, Brad Coe. The recently-filed complaint posits that the Biden administration has adopted policies that are “at odds” with Congress’ authority and have allowed massive numbers of illegal aliens to flood into the country.
Vickers’ ranch lies just 70 miles north of the border. According to the lawsuit, his ranch has incurred more than $50,000 in gate and fence damages alone. He has also allegedly spent thousands more to prevent further environmental destruction.
The complaint states that illegal aliens leave trash and litter behind on Vickers’ property—affecting food and water resources for animals and livestock. In autopsies, Vickers conducted of dead cows, plastic bags and trash were found in the stomach of the cows.
Vickers is forced to always be armed with a rifle and pistol to feel safe on his own property, and his dogs have reportedly caught hundreds of criminal trespassers—including gang members from violent groups like MS13, Tangoblast, Pistoleros, and the Mexican Mafia.
“Due to the Defendants’ border policies and the resulting criminal trespasses and environmental damage, the value of Plaintiff Vickers’ property has decreased by at least 33% to 45%,” reads the lawsuit.
Vickers’ ranch is not the only property that has sustained damages due to the nonenforcement of immigration law. During fiscal year 2022 alone, Kinney County incurred thousands in expenditures for increasing crimes committed by illegal aliens.
Some of these expenses, according to the lawsuit, are:
- EMS immigration non-transport: over $65,000
- Autopsies and EMS transport: over $8,000
- Fuel expense: over $17,000
- Total: over $90,000
Atascosa County has been forced to shoulder similar financial burdens due to the floods of illegal aliens that have swarmed over the border.
The plaintiffs are seeking injunctive relief from the Biden-Harris policies that have resulted in these damages.
“These unlawful policies have not only harmed Kinney County and its residents but threaten the safety and security of our community,” Kinney County attorney Brent Smith posted on Facebook.
Smith also stated that Congress, not the President, retains the exclusive responsibility to create immigration laws determining entry into the country.
“When the President actively undermines those same laws via executive orders, he stands in violation of the ‘Take Care Clause’ of the U.S. Constitution,” he posted.
Smith then blasted the Biden-Harris administration for flaunting congressional authority and enacting policies designed to dismantle and substitute congressional laws with their own.